Thomas Massie, GOP congressman who broke with Trump, reports strong fundraising
Massie was one of two House Republicans to vote against Trump's massive tax bill and he said Trump lacked authority to bomb nuclear sites in Iran without congressional approval.
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Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
China's economy grows 5.2% on trade war truce
China's economy expanded more than five percent in the second quarter of the year, official data showed on Tuesday, after analysts predicted strong exports would provide crucial support despite trade war pressures. The country's leadership is fighting a multi-front battle to sustain growth, a challenge made more difficult by Donald Trump's tariff campaign. The US president has imposed tolls on China and most other major trading partners since returning to office in January, threatening Beijing's exports just as it becomes more reliant on them to stimulate economic activity. The two superpowers have sought to de-escalate their trade spat after reaching a framework for a deal at talks in London last month, but observers warn of lingering uncertainty. Trump upped the ante on Monday, warning Russia's trading partners -- which include China -- that he will impose "very severe" tariffs reaching 100 percent if Moscow fails to end its war on Ukraine within 50 days. Western nations have repeatedly urged China -- a key commercial ally of Russia -- to wield its influence and get Vladimir Putin to stop his three-year-old war with Ukraine. Official data on Tuesday showed the Chinese economy grew 5.2 percent in April-June, matching a prediction by an AFP survey of analysts. But retail sales rose 4.8 percent on-year, below the 5.3 percent forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists, suggesting efforts to kickstart consumption have fallen flat. However, factory output gained 6.8 percent, higher than the 5.6 percent estimate. "The national economy withstood pressure and made steady improvement despite challenges," National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) deputy director Sheng Laiyun told a news conference. "Production and demand grew steadily, employment was generally stable, household income continued to increase, new growth drivers witnessed robust development, and high-quality development made new strides," he said. - Optimism - Data from the General Administration of Customs on Monday showed exports rose much more than expected in June, helped by the US-China trade truce. Imports also rose 1.1 percent, higher than the 0.3 percent gain predicted and marking the first growth this year. Customs official Wang Lingjun told a news conference on Monday that Beijing hoped "the US will continue to work together with China towards the same direction", state broadcaster CCTV reported. The tariff truce was "hard won", Wang said. "There is no way out through blackmail and coercion. Dialogue and cooperation are the right path," he said. However, many analysts are anticipating slower growth in the next six months of the year, with persistently sluggish domestic demand proving a key drag. Data released last week showed that consumer prices edged up in June, barely snapping a four-month deflationary dip, but factory gate prices dropped at their fastest clip in nearly two years. The producer price index, which measures the price of wholesale goods as they leave the factory, declined 3.6 percent year-on-year last month, extending a years-long negative run. Economists argue that China needs to shift towards a growth model propelled more by domestic consumption than the traditional key drivers of infrastructure investment, manufacturing and exports. Beijing has introduced a slew of measures since last year in a bid to boost spending, including a consumer goods trade-in subsidy scheme that briefly lifted retail activity. bur-oho/pbt/dan
Politico
12 minutes ago
- Politico
Japan warns of China's military moves as biggest strategic challenge
The security threats are concentrated in the Indo-Pacific, where Japan is located, and could get worse in the future, the report said. Japan has accelerated its military buildup on southwestern islands in recent years, preparing to deploy long-distance cruise missiles, as it worries about a conflict in Taiwan, which China claims as its territory to be annexed by force if necessary. Taiwan launched 10-day, annual live-fire military exercises last week intended to guard against Chinese threats to invade. Japan tested a short-range, surface-to-ship missile at home earlier last month. Chinese warships' advance in the Pacific has steadily increased, with the frequency of their passage off southwestern Japan tripling in the past three years, including in waters between Taiwan and its neighboring Japanese island of Yonaguni, the 534-page report said. The report comes days after Japan demanded China stop flying its fighter jets abnormally close to Japanese intelligence-gathering aircraft, which it said was happening repeatedly and could cause a collision. Beijing, in return, accused Japan of flying near Chinese airspace for spying purposes. Two earlier close encounters in June occurred over the Pacific Ocean, where Japan spotted two Chinese aircraft carriers operating together for the first time. China's increasing dispatch of aircraft carriers in the Pacific underscores the country's attempt to advance its sea power in distant waters, the report said. It said China's frequent dispatch of bombers for long-distance flights in the Pacific by more sophisticated flight routes and fleet organization is seen as Beijing's attempt to show off its presence around Japan and to further advance its operational capability. The Defense Ministry noted two cases last year — a Chinese warplane's brief violation of Japanese airspace over waters off islands near Nagasaki and an aircraft carrier's entry into a zone just outside of Japan's territorial waters further southwest of the Nansei island chain, which stretches from the southern coast of Kyushu to Taiwan. With President Donald Trump focusing on the strengthening of the U.S. economy and security, Japan and other U.S. allies face expectations to play a greater role for peace and stability in the region, the report said. North Korea poses 'an increasingly serious and imminent threat' for Japan's security, the report said, noting the North's development of missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads into Japanese territory and solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles that can reach the U.S. mainland. Russia maintains active military operations around Japan and violated the country's airspace in September, the report added, saying its increasing strategic cooperation with China has posed 'strong concern' for Japan's security.
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Chaves County Commissioner Michael Perry first GOP candidate in land commissioner race
Jul. 14—SANTA FE — Michael Perry isn't oblivious to the fact New Mexico has only elected three Republicans to lead the State Land Office since 1930. But the Chaves County commissioner and former state Department of Game and Fish official says he's hopeful his conservation-rich background can lead to a GOP breakthrough in next year's land commissioner race. "My hope is that people will put politics aside and look at resumes," said Perry, who recently announced his campaign for the 2026 contest. As the first Republican in the contest, Perry joins a race that currently features three Democratic candidates — state legislator Matthew McQueen, former Biden appointee Jonas Moya and ex-Democratic Party official Juan Sanchez. The race does not feature an incumbent since current Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard is barred under the state Constitution from seeking a third consecutive term. Garcia Richard announced in March her plans to run for lieutenant governor in 2026. Perry, who currently owns a private consulting firm focused on habitat restoration, worked for more than 20 years with the Game and Fish Department as a game warden and, in later years, as a top administrator overseeing the agency's operations in southern New Mexico. He then worked for former Land Commissioner Aubrey Dunn, a Republican-turned-Libertarian, as an assistant commissioner. In that role, Perry said he worked with sportsmen's groups on access issues, including easements and right-of-way leases for certain hard-to-reach state trust lands. He said those experiences make his resume unmatched among the candidates in the land commissioner race. "I feel like I'm a good fit based on my biological background and my on the ground experience," Perry said. He also said that, if elected, he would ensure companies who lease state trust land for oil drilling or other commercial activities clean up their waste, while also saying he would oppose selling public lands. The idea of selling federal public lands to build more affordable housing drew criticism and protests in New Mexico, before eventually being removed from a massive budget bill signed this month by President Donald Trump. "I'm not an advocate of selling lands," Perry said. "I'm for us making money, but it's got to be done in a way that can last forever." The State Land Office oversees more than 9 million acres of state trust land, plus 13 million subsurface acres, for the benefit of New Mexico public schools, hospitals and other beneficiaries. The annual earnings recorded by the office jumped from roughly $1.1 billion during the 2019 budget year to nearly $2.6 billion in the 2024 fiscal year, with more than 90% of that amount coming from oil and natural gas royalties. In running for land commissioner next year, Perry will have to forego a reelection bid to the Chaves County Commission. That's because state law bars candidates from running for two separate elected offices in the same election cycle.
